The Ice That Made Fire
by Archangel777117
Summary: Katniss Everdeen won the 74th Hunger Games, and found out the terrible truth about the lives that Victors live. The fire that once lived in her heart has been reduced to a dying flame. That was until a pair of icy blue eyes sparked a flame that would change her forever.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own The Hunger Games

The 74th Hunger Games are over, and Katniss Everdeen has been declared the winner. But as she made her way from District to District for the Victor's Tour, she talked to each of the Victors, all of them telling her terrible truth of being a Victor. The horrors they've faced for surviving the nightmare. She felt absolutely lifeless, as if someone had ripped the joy out of her. But the circumstances of her victory didn't help.

Her and Peeta had survived to the very end, it was just them and the male from District Three, Thresh. The three had steered clear from each other the entire night, hoping to avoid a skirmish. That all changed when howls pierced the silence of the night. Katniss and Peeta found themselves on the run from mutts that had dead-set eyes on devouring their prey. They heard a cannon soon after, sounding the death of Thresh. The, "Star-Crossed Lovers", found themselves desperately climbing the Cornucopia. The two of them stood on the metallic structure, looking around as all the mutts tried time after time to climb the flawless metal. Peeta looked over at Katniss with tears in his eyes, "You have to live, Katniss." He said, Katniss shaking her head frantically, as her hands clanged to his shirt. Trying to hold him there as she pleaded for him to reconsider. Her mind thought of the nightlock that had killed the tribute known as Foxface. But Katniss had left them there in hopes that Thresh would come across them in starvation.

Peeta took her hands in his and tore them from his shirt, "Think of Prim." He whispered, his calm ocean blue eyes staring her in her stormy-gray pair. Even when they were on the brink of the death, his eyes still calmed her. She watched helplessly as he fell into the pit of mutts, Katniss looking away as he was torn apart by the gnawing teeth of the vicious animals. And before she knew it, she was the Victor of the 74th Hunger Games. She could still hear his screams whenever she closed her eyes, the last sight of his blue eyes before he threw himself to save her. It's in these moments that she feels the most pain, the most guilt.


	2. Chapter 2

"Ms. Everdeen?" Katniss's eyes shot open as Effie Trinket, who has been the one and only reason why Katniss ever gets up and gets dressed to go on the tours, turned the lights on. Katniss had been staying on the very same train that took her and Peeta took to the Training Center. Her room was completely trashed, the windows were covered up by blankets, leaving the room in darkness. The large bed was always unmade since Katniss never left it unless she was obligated by her new, "Responsibilities", as a Victor. The lavish paintings that once decorated the room had been tossed aside in Katniss's fits of guilt. As well as the nightmares that took hold of her at night.

"What do you want, Effie?" Katniss groaned out, throwing the blanket over her head to hide from the light, only to have it taken off by Effie. "We're in District Two, and the mayor has invited you to a banquet in your honor!"She said cheerfully, only to get a groan in response. "Oh greeeat, another night of men staring at me as they plan to bid for my body." Her gray eyes glared at Effie, who seemed to smile less and less as the days went on.

Effie always tried to cheer up Katniss, but the peppy capitol girl had no cheery saying today. But instead, she just sighed and sat on the bed, looking over at Katniss with a face The Girl on Fire had never seen from her before. She wasn't wearing make-up, and she didn't have that annoying smile on her face. "Ms. Ever- Katniss...I never wanted any of this for you. I never knew the kind of damage the Capitol did to Victors because I was just a regular citizen. But seeing you, talking to you every morning and being there with you at all the festivities, I can see how everyone looks at you differently." Katniss watched as a lone tear slid down Effie's face, "I see these things from your eyes, and I just can't live it." Katniss felt for Effie. Before she would have just been angry, but being able to share this with someone like Effie, someone who has never had to deal with such hardship. It felt encouraging.

Katniss wrapped her arms around Effie, who returned the hug, "Thank you, Effie. You have no idea how much that means to me." Katniss whispered, the two sharing a moment together before Katniss forced herself to get dressed up for the banquet. It killed her whenever she received a video call from District Twelve. Forcing herself to be happy so Prim would never catch on to what was really going on. The only solace she could ever find was that her body wouldn't be auctioned out until AFTER the Victor's tour was over.

Katniss dressed up in her usual black dress, her hair straightened and loose behind her shoulders. Katniss was driven to the mansion of the Mayor of District Two. It was a grand-design that was famed throughout Panem. All because the design itself predated back to an ancient civilization known as "The Romans", a culture District Two often used due to its warlike nature. But Katniss did what she always did, put on a tunnel-vision and head straight through the party. Talking to as very little people as possible. Luckily for her, this was a dinner party. Which means all she had to do was sit, eat, and leave. She was given a seat at the center of the room beside the Mayor, his wife, and all the other victors. But there was one empty seat. The one right beside her. The Mayor stood from his seat and held up his glass of wine, tapping on the glass with his spoon. "Everyone! May I have your attention please?" There was a silence as everyone looked to him, "It appears our latest Victor, Cato Hadley, will not be joining us tonight, once again. But the guest of honor, the Girl on Fire herself, is here!" He shouted, motioning to Katniss, the crowd applauding for some reason before the door to the dining hall flew open. Everyone looked to the disturbance, and when Katniss looked, she found a pair of icy blue eyes looking right back at her.


	3. Chapter 3

The man had ruffled up blonde hair, and he was wearing a dark blue suit, which brought out his cold blue eyes. He had a white shirt with a crimson red tie. He looked around nonchalantly at the gazing eyes of dinner guests, "Did I come in too fast? Should I do it again?" He asked with a grin as he looked at the doors that had damaged the marble walls they slammed against. "Mr. Hadley, how nice of you to join us." The Mayor said with a displeased tone as Cato made his way through the lines of tables, "I'm _so_ sorry, My Lord." He said with a strange accent, "The carriage lost a wheel again!" Some in the crowd of guests laughed at the display, while Cato took his seat beside Katniss. "Perhaps I'll give President Snow a call about your behavior..." The Mayor said with a large smug grin as he looked past Katniss and to Cato, whose grin faded immediately, his eyes narrowing down at the table in front of him. "That won't be necessary." Cato said with a more obedient tone as he looked over at the mayor, "I apologize for being late."

The Mayor chuckled to himself, and Katniss felt the immediate urge to punch him in the face. But the thought of having to explain it to Snow cut that thought off immediately. The tension in the room was forgotten when a band came in and began playing music. It felt like eternity had past when Katniss finally noticed Cato was gone. It was like he was never even there in the first place. His chair was like it was when she got there, his plate and glass were completely clean. She looked around for a moment before excusing herself from the table, taking a door in the back of the room which led to a completely marble deck overlooking an ocean. She stood before the marble railing, looking down as violent waves smashed against the rocks below the structure.

She closed her eyes, imagining her future as the property of the Capitol. How hundreds, possibly thousands of men will be bidding for her body in mere days. Katniss pressed herself against the railings, the thought of it no longer being there feeling like a blessing. To be able to escape this life.

Katniss reached back and pulled a bobby pin out of her hair, allowing it to flow more freely. She opened her eyes finally, looking up at the bright full moon before taking a heavy sigh. "It's an interesting thought." A voice whispered through the night, bringing Katniss back to reality forcing her to back away from the railings. She looked around to find Cato just a little ways down the deck. He was leaning over the railing on his elbows. "I remember when I realized what my life was about to become. It was right here." He looked over at her with that sly grin from before, his piercing blue eyes shining in the night.

"What are you doing here?" Katniss asked, trying to avoid the subject. Cato stood up straight and stretched out a little, turning to his fellow Victor. "Like _anyone_ in their right mind would stay in there. Plus, we're only required to _show up._ As long as everyone sees us once, we can do whatever." Cato looked over at the sea once more, he was holding a knife in his hands. Twirling it around in his fingers. "Does it get easier?" Katniss asked, her stormy gray eyes looking to him, looking for some hope. The man looked down at the knife in his hands, twirling it once more before putting in a hidden sheath in the line of the waist. "You learn to cope with it. Or, you let them take everyone you love." He looked up at her, their eyes staring at each other. "I know that's not what you wanted to hear, but it's what happens." Katniss once again walked to the edge, looking down at the waves that continued to rage against the sharp edged rocks. Cato joined her, standing right beside her. "Death is an easy choice." Cato said with softly, "But that just destroys the memory of the people who died in the arena instead of you." Katniss listened to his words, her mind remembering that Peeta had died for her. "Then what do we do?" She asked, a tear falling down her cheek. Cato smiled, reaching over and wiping the tear away with his thumb. "A good friend of mine, Johanna Mason, once told me to, 'Make them pay for it.'" Katniss looked at him for a moment, confused before Cato cupped her chin with his hand, their eyes locked together. "You only have a few more days of freedom, right?" The girl nodded, frozen in his grip. "Well, lets make them pay for it."


	4. Chapter 4

**This was, without a doubt, the most emotional scene I've ever written. I apologize if I was unable to capture all the emotions possible, but I've never done anything like it. Please let me know what you think!**

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Cato and Katniss found themselves running throughout the vacant part of the mansion. Katniss was hesitant at first, but after Cato taught her how to draw mustaches using portraits of the Mayor as practice, she livened up a little. Eventually they found themselves sitting in a fancy study. They took the two leather recliners in the center of the room for themselves. The room itself had one entrance, a large door that took up most of the wall, but all the other walls were covered with books.

They both had a glass of wine in hand, Katniss had only recently began to drink wine. It helped her mind relax in some ways. "I don't mean to be rude, or pushy." Cato began as he swiveled the glass in his hand, watching the red liquid turn into a whirlpool. "But I never got to introduce myself...Cato Hadley, Victor of the 73rd Hunger Games." Katniss cocked her head slightly, "I was stuck in the woods in District Twelve during the final parts of that year." She said, taking a sip from the glass. Cato nodded, staring off for a moment as if the thought of it took him back to that terrible time.

"It was the first Hunger Games to end in the first two days. Mainly because of the people in it...I remember the morning of the Reaping. I went to see my girlfriend, Clove Asvil. I had planned to volunteer for the Games, but I just had to do one thing before I did. When I came over, she was finishing up her morning chore of making sure her little brother was up and dressed for the day. I was waiting in the kitchen to surprise her, and right when I thought she was going to come in. I felt a knife to my throat, then a kiss to my cheek." He chuckled to himself, "She was always better at sneaking around than I was...We had breakfast together, and I asked her for a cup of milk. But when she had turned around, I was holding a ring in my hand, asking her to marry me." Katniss had set down her glass and sat up with her knees against her chest, her chin resting on a knee as she listened to his tale. Her stormy gray eyes locked on him in a trance. "But before she could answer, the sirens wailed for all eligible people to go to the Justice Building for the Reaping. So we rushed off before the Peacekeepers had a chance to come charging in to drag us there. I remember standing in the men's section, and right across from me was Clove. She had this...Smile on her face, it radiated happiness as if telling me, 'I can't wait to tell you my answer'. Then I watched that smile fade as the announcer called her name for the females. She was dragged away to the platform, and I volunteered immediately. If anyone was going to make it out of there, it had to be her."

"Then why did everyone make a big deal out of Peeta and I?" Katniss asked, almost missing the days when everyone believed they were true lovers. Cato leaned further back into his seat, crossing his legs and styling his hair to the side a little. "We never told anyone about our relationship. In District Two, love is discouraged unless you're already producing for the Capitol in some way. So we went with best friends."

"We went the entirety of Training just as friends. Even when we went to bed, we knew we needed to be completely focused on what was to come. The day eventually came that we were to fight for our lives. Our arena was...Strange. It was small, with a large pit in the center of it with no bottom in sight. The bloodbath was...Disastrous. Everyone crowding up in groups to kill others. Clove and I were a perfect team. If someone got close, they met my blade. But if someone thought they could run, they were met with her knives. By the end of the first day, there were only five of us left, including Clove and I. On that final day, we went off to hunt. We found ourselves up against three people, two of them were from District One, and the other from Three. The girl from One was pushed inside the hole almost immediately. I took on the guy while Clove fought the girl from Three. The guy from One was using an axe, and after a long fight, managed to dig it right into my left arm. But, he took a risk and it didn't pay off. As soon as the axe cut my arm, my sword dug into his gut and he was dead before he hit the ground. So I run to help Clove, who had taken her fight near the hole somehow. But when I had got there, It was in time to see Clove stick a dagger right into his chest before pushing him into the hole. But somehow he managed to grab onto her leg with enough life to make her slip and almost dragged her in with him. I barely was able to catch her by the hand. So there we are, I'm hung over the edge with barely my waist left on the ground, digging the toes of my boots into the grass, as well as my free hand in hopes of being able to pull Clove and myself up. The problem was, I grabbed her with my left hand, and my right was the only thing holding me in place. She looked up at me, with eyes that told me to let go. Both of us knew that I couldn't hold us both up. My left arm was pale from blood loss, and the grass was ripping from my right hand. I begged her not to let go, that I'd find someway to get her out of there. But she let go, and I watched the woman I loved fall into a pit of blackness. Never to be see again except from videos and pictures from the past."


	5. Chapter 5

**This will chapter for a little bit. I will be going into Basic Training for the U.S Air Force, I hope you all enjoyed the story so far! I will update it soon after I get out. Thank you all for reading!**

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Katniss looked at the broken man in disbelief, she could see the hurt in his eyes as he continued to stare down at his empty glass. "Cato.." She was interrupted by Effie who creaked open the large wooden door, "Katniss?" She called out, Katniss let off a sigh, disappointed that she didn't get to comfort Cato in his time of need. Usually when Effie came to get her, it was time to leave. Before, Katniss would ignore Effie, but after the moment on the train, Katniss felt more personal with the Capitol citizen. "I'm here, Effie."

Effie walked in the wide room, Cato giving a shy wave to the woman. "Time to leave already?" He asked in a childish tone. Effie sighed, "Actually...The train, and most of the monorail lines leading in and out of District Two are out of commission. The Peacekeepers told me their was a malfunction with the monorail system." She looked back at the door for a moment before whispering to the two, "But from what I hear, they were blown up. You didn't hear it from me." Cato blinked for a moment, "Then where will you two go?" Effie smiled, "The Mayor has offered to shelter us here at his mansion until the Capitol can ensure our safety." Cato grinned slightly at the news, "Then perhaps I can offer my own hospitality?" He asked, looking up at Effie, who shook her head, "I think it would be best if we stay here, more security." Katniss grinned, "If it is alright with you, Effie, I'd like to take him up on the offer."

Effie turned to Katniss to argue, then she saw that grin. It was something Effie hadn't seen in quite some time. "I..Think it can be arranged." Effie said before looking at Cato and rolling her eyes as she walked out.

"Well, guess you're spending the night." Cato said with a grin, Katniss shrugging, "I just thought if anyone could protect me, it's the man who can do weird accents." Cato looked at her with a confused look on his face, "I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't make fun of my accent, My Lord." He replied before standing a taking a dramatic bow. "When I was a kid I loved old plays, and musicals." Katniss laughed and shook her head, "I may have to hurt you if you do it again." She joked, standing and giving a playful punch in the arm. Cato held up his arm and rubbed it in pain. "Ouch. You don't have to be so mean." He cried, Katniss sighing and shaking her head, "And you are my protector..."

Cato and Katniss found their way to the limousine that had taken Cato to the party. In no time they were at his home in the mountains. His home was not like the Mayor's, it was a nice two-story brick-house. Once Cato began walking towards the wooden steps of the deck that led to the front door, a small boy ran out, "Cato!" He shouted, arms outstretched and was met by Cato who hugged the boy and picked him up, spinning him around and putting him down. The boy came up to Cato's hip, and looked nothing like him. He had short black hair, with brown eyes. "This is Magnus..." Cato said with a wide warm smile, "...Clove's little brother."


End file.
